The present invention relates a pointing apparatus and a pointing method for displaying a pointer at a pointed position on a screen of a display device of a computer in response to a pointing operation performed by a user through a mouse, and for changing a color of an image around the displayed pointer to make the displayed pointer stand out in response to an input by a user through a key or an absence of an input by a user through a key during a predetermined period.
In a computer operation based upon a GUI (graphical user interface), a method is used in which a user points out a desired position of an image on a screen displayed by a computer through a pointing device, such as a mouse, and the computer gets operational data in the image specified by the pointer.
In this method, an image of the pointer, such as a mouse cursor, is displayed at a position within the image pointed at, in or on by the user through the mouse, and the user performs a selection and a confirmation of the operation by observing the pointer and the position within the image pointed to by the pointer.
There is a problem that since the size of the pointer, such as the mouse cursor, is relatively small, it is difficult for the user to find or identify the pointer or it takes a long time to find or locate the pointer when the user has lost sight of the pointer. The problem becomes more pronounced in the case where the computer displays multiple windows on the screen, displays the image on a large size screen, or dividedly displays the image on plural monitor devices.
To solve the problem, a method calling for a comet cursor in which a trace of the movement of the pointer is displayed during a short period was used. However, it is extremely difficult to make the pointer be pronounced or stand out when the pointer is stopped.
Japanese publications of unexamined patent applications H4-52922 (Article 1) and H7-160416 (Article 2) disclose methods for displaying the pointer by changing a shape of the pointer. However, the Article 1 document merely discloses a method for changing the image of the pointer in response to a switch of the operation of the mouse (mouse mode), and does not disclose a method for causing the user to easily identify the pointer by making the pointer stand out or be noticeable.
The Article 2 document discloses a method for changing a shape, size, color or gradation of the pointer or blinking the pointer each time the user touches the mouse. However, these methods cause problems in that the pointer is changed whenever the user touches the mouse, though the user does not want to do so; it is impossible to make the pointer stand out enough in the case where the size of the pointer is not increased, but the shape, color or gradation is changed; alternatively, when the size of the pointer is increased, the GUI image below the image of the enlarged pointer is hidden.
The present invention was made based upon the recognition of the above problems. An object of the present invention is to provide an improved pointing apparatus and an improved pointing method capable of making a position of the pointer on the screen stand out at an appropriate time for the user when the user points out a position on the screen by using the pointing apparatus, such as the mouse.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved pointing apparatus and a pointing method for causing the user to easily find the pointer on the screen to improve the usability of the computer in the case that the user lost sight of the pointer on the screen, the computer displays multiple windows on the screen, displays the image on a large size screen, or displays the divided image on plural monitor device.
In accordance with the pointing device and the pointing method of the present invention, it is possible to make the position of the pointer on the screen stand out at the appropriate intervals for the user under the circumstances where the user points out the position on the screen using pointing device, such as the mouse.
Also, in accordance with the pointing device and the pointing method of the present invention, it is possible for the user to easily find out the pointer on the screen to improve a usability of the computer in the case that the user lost sight of the pointer on the screen, the computer displays multiple windows on the screen, displays the image on a large size screen, or displays the image on plural monitor device.
To achieve the above objects and other improvements, a pointing apparatus in accordance with the present invention includes, an image display for displaying an image on a screen, a pointing device for pointing to any position on the screen to display a pointer at the pointed position on the screen, and an image changing feature responsive to an external input for changing the image within at least a predetermined area around the displayed pointer on the screen.
The image changing feature changes at least color of the image within the predetermined area around the displayed pointer on the screen. The image changing feature further changes a size of the predetermined area around the displayed pointer. The image changing feature inverts values of image data constituting the image within the area around the displayed pointer.
The pointing apparatus in accordance with the present invention responds to depressing a key of a keyboard to change the color of the image within the predetermined area, such as a square area or a circular area having a center aligned to the center of the pointer, around the pointer, such as a mouse cursor, displayed on the screen to make the position of the pointer stand out without preventing the user""s observation of the image within the area. In the case that the computer displays plural windows on the screen, the computer displays the image on a large screen, or the computer dividedly displays the image on plural screens.
In the pointing apparatus in accordance with the present invention, the image display device is a monitor device, for example, of the computer, and displays the GUI image inputted from the computer on its screen. The pointing apparatus responds to the depression of a button of the mouse to point to a position on the GUI image selected by the user and to display the pointer, such as a mouse cursor, at the pointed position.
The image changing feature changes the color of the image within a square area (alternative shapes can be used) which surrounds the pointer and has a center aligned to the center of the pointer by inverting the image data of the image (inverting xe2x80x9c1xe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9c0xe2x80x9d of the image data in the case that the image data is represented by binary notation) within the square area, and changes the size of the area including the image data to be changed at a predetermined constant interval to make the position of the pointer stand out, in the case that the user depresses a predetermined key of the keyboard of the computer to make the position of the pointer stand out or the user does not perform any input operation to the computer during a predetermined period.
Since the display of the image by inverting the image data causes the shapes of characters, symbols and patterns in the image displayed in the area around the pointer to be maintained, the observation or recognition of the GUI image by the user is not obscured or prevented. Further, when the size of the area containing the image, the color of which image has been changed, is changed at the predetermined interval, the position of the pointer is made to stand out more clearly in comparison with the case that the size of the area is not changed, so that the user can find or locate the pointer more readily.
The pointing method in accordance with the present invention includes the steps of displaying an image on a screen, pointing to, at or on any position on the screen to display a pointer at the pointed position on the screen, and changing the image within at least a predetermined area around the displayed pointer on the screen.
A computer readable recording medium in accordance with the present invention records a program for causing a computer to execute steps of displaying an image on a screen, pointing to any position on the screen to display a pointer at the pointed position on the screen, and changing the image within at least a predetermined area around the displayed pointer on the screen.